


The exception that proves my rule

by jannika



Category: Eye Candy (TV)
Genre: M/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-02
Updated: 2015-06-02
Packaged: 2018-04-02 11:11:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,707
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4057837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jannika/pseuds/jannika
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tommy keeps interrupting Connor's dates. That might be why Connor keeps making them. Post-Canon. Tommy/Connor. Implied background very close Lindy/Sophia things. A lot of Connor and Sophia friendship feelings. Romcom style feelings and hijinks.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The exception that proves my rule

**Author's Note:**

> Lately, I've been all about fic for my little ships and things that don't have much/anything written about them. I've been thinking about writing something like this for these two since I first watched this show.And I thought if I really wanted something like this to exist, there must be other people who do as well. Also, I'm still mad about how very much I like Tommy Calligan.
> 
> (There is tiny bit of super, super consensual light kink at the end, just so you know going in.)

It all kicks off on a random Thursday afternoon- at least, this part kicks off on a random Thursday afternoon, because honestly, it had all started on a truly horrifying night months ago. This is different, this a speeding up of something that was probably inevitable anyway. Connor had just meant to keep the conversation going, he hadn’t meant to start all of this. Although, he knows, at least in part, that wanting to keep the conversation going is already something happening. He knows that. But still, he doesn’t think it’s more than that when he responds to Tommy’s _how is your day going?_ text. He thinks, as he types, _okay. I’ve got a date tonight I’m not looking forward to, though,_ that it’s just a lot more interesting than saying he’s fine. 

Even when Tommy responds with, _oh, really? Why’s that?_ Connor thinks, yeah, it’s just keeping the conversation up. So he sends, _I don’t think he’s really my type. I’m not even sure why I said yes,_ and doesn’t really think about it. Until Tommy responds to that with, well:

 _Want me to come rescue you from it?_ and Connor’s eyebrows raise up to his hair as he sends back, _How exactly?_ His phone buzzes again about 45 seconds later with, _You could text me if it’s not going well. I could come interrupt, pretend I need you for official police business._ And. That sounds pretty great, honestly. For so many reasons, some of which he is actively not thinking about right now. So he sends, _I like this plan very much,_ and leaves it that. For now.

///

The date is boring- it’s worse than Connor had thought it would be, honestly. His date, Dan, is telling a really dull story about his job and Connor is trying, and probably failing, to look remotely politely interested when Tommy strolls in. He’s got his badge around his neck and a very serious expression on his face.

“Um,” Dan says.

“Connor, I’m sorry to do this, but I need you to come down to the station,” Tommy says, still looking serious. Connor nods, trying to look equally serious.

“Of course,” he says, and then looks back at Dan with what he hopes is convincing regret, “sorry, but I’m sort of involved in, well. I can’t really talk about it, but I have to go.”

“I hate to interrupt your night, but it’s important,” Tommy puts in.

“Sure?” Dan says, sounding unsure and looking equal parts terrified and impressed. 

“Sorry again,” Connor says, throwing down money for both his drink and Dan’s, because he’s not a total dick, and then getting up. Tommy puts a hand on his arm as he does, to add to this being legitimate and important part, Connor is sure.

“I’ll call you sometime?" Dan offers, and Connor should probably feel bad about how he’s already turning away, but he really doesn’t.

“Yeah,” Connor offers halfheartedly, letting Tommy lead him out of the bar.

“How’d I do?” Tommy asks when they’re outside, grinning and looking ridiculously pleased with himself.

“I think it went well,” Connor says, grinning back, “thanks.”

“Anytime,” Tommy says.

And, _anytime_ probably doesn’t mean forty-eight hours from now, even when Tommy follows it up with suggesting he and Connor should grab a drink somewhere else before they both head home, since they were already out, and all, but Connor agrees to another random date for Saturday anyway. 

He’s not looking forward to the date itself, but he is looking forward to Tommy’s promised interruption. He knows he should probably think more about that, but he doesn’t really want to. Not yet.

///

Connor is hardly listening to Leon’s story, he really just can’t bring himself to, knowing it’s about to be cut off. It’s all he can do to keep his hands from tapping on the table restlessly. Tommy walks in right on cue, in the middle of a sentence that Connor thinks is maybe about Leon’s ex, probably.

“Connor,” Tommy starts, strolling up to the table. 

“Wait,” Leon interrupts before Tommy can finish, “is this your ex? Because I’m really not up for jealous ex drama. You didn’t tell me you had a cop ex-boyfriend.” Connor feels his mouth open and close, trying to figure out how to correct that. He looks over at Tommy, who catches his eye and raises his eyebrow and grins just a little.

“Well,” Tommy says, tone in his voice making it pretty clear he is planning on _going with this_ , “Connor didn’t tell me he was planning to date while we were on break. So I guess we were all a little in the dark.”

“I,” Connor starts, not sure if he’s mad or thrilled that Tommy is going along, “I didn’t know I need to run things by you.”

“It would have been nice to know,” Tommy says, crossing his arms. 

“The break was your idea, I didn’t think you’d mind,” Connor says, and he feels a little ridiculous, because even if this is all a lie, it’s a dramatic one that’s really not his style. It does seem to be working, though, because Leon stands up at that, looking back and forth between them and shaking his head.

“Yeah, I’m not doing this,” Leon says, and then he walks out, looking annoyed. Tommy smirks and slides into the now-empty seat across from Connor. 

“Well, that was a twist,” Tommy says, looking, if possible, even more pleased with himself than last time.

“Yeah,” Connor agrees. He’s feeling a little wrong-footed by it all, and he’s not a thousand percent sure why.

“We can run that story from now on if you want,” Tommy says, still grinning. Connor blinks at him, because this is. Tommy does this. He just sometimes says these things that Connor is not sure what to make of. 

“Is that a good idea?” Connor asks. 

“Why not?” Tommy says, shrugging, “unless you don’t want people to think you’d ever have gone out with me.”

“It’s not that,” Connor says quickly. He thinks it’s more that he’s having trouble wrapping his head around the idea that Tommy wants to do this, really. “I mean, if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all, it was kind of fun,” Tommy says. Connor tilts his head, trying to read this, trying to figure out what’s happening here. Trying to figure out why they’re even having this conversation, because this becoming a regular _thing_ would be ridiculous and nonsense, right?

“We’ll have to do it again sometime, then,” Connor says. He thinks but bites back, _are you trying to flirt with me?_

“Definitely,” Tommy says, grinning again, and then grabbing for the bar food menu, “do you want to split some food?”

They end up staying for hours. It’s the best date that’s not a date at all that Connor has ever been on.

///

The thing is, it’s not impossible. Connor isn’t sure he thinks it’s likely that this is going anywhere, that this is anything other than what it seems to be on the surface, that Tommy isn’t honestly just bored and helping a friend out. Realistically, that is probably what this is, and sometimes Connor isn’t even sure if he wants it to be any more than that- but. 

But it’s not impossible. Months ago, right after Sophia had gone home from the hospital, he and Tommy had been having coffee one morning, when, in response to something Connor had mentioned about an ex from college, Tommy had said,

“Yeah, I’ve been there, I dated this guy once who insisted on-” and what, exactly, Tommy’s ex-boyfriend had insisted on Connor will never know, because his brain didn’t really process anything past _dated this guy once_. He’d recovered in time to calmly ask how long they’d dated, thankfully. (Three weeks, apparently, is the answer.)

With that, and a few social media accounts that Connor may have investigated, a little, listing Tommy’s sexuality as bisexual, well. It’s not impossible. So, while Connor really isn’t sure it’s probable, he thinks he need to at least acknowledge to himself, as he texts Tommy that he’s going on out on another date on Wednesday, that it’s a possibility. 

///

On Wednesday, Tommy slides right into the booth Connor is in, slides right into it and right up to him.

“Hey,” Tim, who had been in the middle of talking about his pet bird, says.

“What’s this?” Tommy says, looking straight at Connor. They’d thrown out some ideas for fake jealous ex-fights to have over coffee earlier this week. ( _”I just don’t want to say anything that will actually offend you,”_ Tommy’d said.)

“None of your business,” Connor says, raising his eyebrows. Tommy moves in even closer, looking convincingly jealous, Connor has to say.

“I’m pretty sure it is my business,” Tommy says.

“Excuse me,” Tim says. Neither Tommy nor Connor look at him.

“I’m pretty sure taking a break was your idea,” Connor says. He’s keeping his eyes locked on Tommy as he does. This whole thing is still so ridiculous, but Connor can’t say he wants it to stop happening.

“And I’m pretty sure that seeing other people wasn’t something we agreed on,” Tommy says. He’s really good at this, actually. 

“Look, I don’t think I want to be part of-” Tim starts. Connor shakes his head at Tommy and cuts Tim off.

“I didn’t know you got to make all the rules!” Connor says. 

“No, apparently you do!” Tommy says. 

“Wow, yeah, I’m just going to go,” Tim says, standing up. Connor forces himself to keep glaring at Tommy the whole time.

“It wasn’t my choice in the first place!” Connor says, making his voice carry loud enough that Tim can hear it as he retreats.

“That was good,” Tommy says, voice much lower, smile replacing the frown that had been on his face only seconds ago. 

“We certainly convinced him,” Connor says, smiling back. 

“You’re not a bad actor,” Tommy says. He hasn’t slid away yet, he’s still sitting much closer to Connor than necessary. 

“You either,” Connor says. 

“Like I said, this is kind of fun,” Tommy says, finally backing up a little, and then standing all the way up and sliding across the table. Which, they hadn’t talked about that, about Tommy staying after, about if that was also going to be part of whatever this _thing_ is, but apparently it is. Tommy looks like he’s settling in, grinning at Connor across the table now. Not that Connor minds, but he is starting to wonder how it’s possible that Tommy doesn’t have anything better to do. Anything else he’d rather be doing. Anyone else he’d rather be with. 

“It is,” Connor agrees, taking a gulp of the drink he’d ordered earlier. Tommy grins again, and reaches for a menu. 

Maybe, Connor tells himself, it’s just that Tommy isn’t dating anyone right now. Maybe he’s just lonely. Maybe.

///

“Okay, what’s up with you?” Sophia says two days later when Connor is preparing for another date.

“What do you mean?” Connor asks, pulling a sweater out of his drawer. 

“I mean, since when do you go on dates this often?” Sophia asks. She’s not even a little bit wrong, of course, but Connor doesn’t know how to explain it. He’s still not even sure how to explain it to himself. He doesn’t really think he can say that he’s maybe been making all of these dates just so Tommy can interrupt them without sounding like. Well. He doesn’t want to think about how that sounds.

“Just felt like I needed to get out there, I guess,” Connor says. Sophia raises a disbelieving eyebrow at him from the couch. 

“Do you even like any of these men?” Sophia asks, making a move like she’s about to get up for a mug that’s just out of her reach.

“I might,” Connor says, “I’ll get that, you sit.”

“I can walk,” Sophia says, rolling her eyes a little. Connor rolls his right back at her and tucks in his sweater before handing her the mug.

“You’re still supposed to be taking it easy,” Connor reminds her. Sophia huffs around her drink.

“It was a step,” Sophia says. Connor shakes his head and sits down next to her.

“A step you didn’t have take,” Connor says. They’ve had more variations of this conversation than he count in the past few months. Since. Well. Sophia doesn’t like to talk about it. Not in specifics anyway, and Connor respects that. He doesn’t really like to think about it either. (Tommy’s mentioned, or asked, really, Tommy’s said that if Connor wants or feels like he needs, that Tommy’s got this friend that’s a therapist. If between Oliver, and finding Sophia, and Tessa, and all of it, really, Connor wanted to talk to someone. He doesn’t. He hasn’t so far. He’s been okay, honestly, more worried about Sophia’s recovery than his own stuff. But he’d really appreciated the offer, anyway. Maybe one day he will want or need to talk about it.)

“But one I could have,” Sophia points out, taking a sip of her drink. She could, she’s right. She’s better now, she’s doing so well and Connor gets that and he’s glad every day, but he’s also heard doctors tell her to take it easy. And he knows her, knows that if it was up to her she’d be out at IRL at all hours, running up and down stairs and moving furniture. He knows that without Lindy at the apartment, she’s probably been doing more at home than she’s actually cleared for. So if he overshoots it a little when he can, well. It’s Sophia.

“I know,” Connor says. 

“So this guy,” Sophia starts, not deterred from trying to get to the bottom of Connor’s new social life, until her phone buzzes and her face does that _Lindy_ thing. Connor steps back into the other room to let them talk. And to finish getting ready for his date.

///

 _Hope I didn’t make you feel like you had to stay the other night! You can tell me if you just want me to go home! I’ll see you later!_ Tommy texts just as Connor is entering tonight’s bar for tonight’s date. He stares at his phone for a minute, unsure how to respond because he’s pretty sure Tommy has been doing him a favor, that it’s Tommy who is giving up his time and his nights. He shakes his head and texts back, _it’s been fun. A lot better than the actual dates._

He spends the next forty-five minutes waiting for Tommy to arrive.

///

It’s their fifth date- no. No. It’s Connor’s fifth random date that Tommy is interrupting on purpose. It’s that date, when things get interesting. More interesting. 

“Really?” Clive is asking, watching both of them, but he doesn’t sound as annoyed or put off as the rest of them have. In fact, he sounds. _Interested._ “This is not what I was expecting. I can work with it, though.”

“Excuse me?” Tommy says, turning his head. 

“This, you two, it’s hot,” Clive says, waving his hand. Connor tries really hard not to wince because that’s really not the plan. This is not how this is supposed to go.

“Hot?” Connor repeats, even though he’s perfectly aware what Clive is suggesting. He’s just stalling and trying to read Tommy’s mind to see what they’re going to do, here. (Although, if he could read Tommy’s mind they might not be doing any of this in the first place, one way or the other.)

“Yeah, maybe, if you two are having trouble, you need to spice things up a little. Have a little help, a little variety in the bedroom,” Clive says, grinning like he’s come up with a genius idea. 

“That’s not gonna happen,” Tommy says, arching an eyebrow at Connor as he does.

“Why not? You’re obviously still into each other, and it could help. It’s a win-win deal,” Clive says. Connor should really maybe scout these guys more carefully. It’s just that he’s needed to have so many dates lately. 

“No,” Tommy says, and then he reaches out and grabs Connor’s hand, “that was never an issue we had, really.”

“Yeah, we um,” Connor starts, staring at the way Tommy is still sort of raising his eyebrows and looking very much like he might want Connor to be reading his mind right now, “we never had any problems in the, bedroom, so, no.”

“You sure about that?” Clive asks, still smirking.

“Very sure,” Tommy says, and his hand that’s holding Connor’s is making patterns on his hand now, patterns like- like letters, maybe? And he’s still looking at Connor and, okay that is a question mark he’s tracing with his thumb, Connor is pretty sure.

“Totally sure,” Connor repeats, and then, because he actually has gotten Tommy’s message or because the idea pops into his head all on its own, he’s not sure, but he leans in. He leans in and he feels Tommy nod just slightly as he does, and so he kisses him. He kisses Tommy and Tommy’s hand comes up to cup around the back of his head. This is probably a terrible idea, Connor thinks, for so many reasons, the most immediate being that Clive is probably into this and they’re not actually helping the situation at all. But the longer it goes on, the closer in he leans to Tommy, the longer they keep kissing, the more Connor does care. He wants to just. Not stop. He wants to let the warmth of Tommy’s mouth overtake him, wants to bunch his hand in Tommy’s shirt and run his tongue across Tommy’s lips and into his mouth, wants to keep kissing Tommy until Clive just disappears. Until maybe this whole bar disappears.

“Whoa, hey, I get it,” Clive says, from somewhere, after an amount of time Connor isn’t sure of. He and Tommy pull back, just a little, and Tommy puts his forehead against Connor’s and grins at him. “That was hot, though. I hope you two work it out.” Clive finishes. Out of the corner of his eye, Connor watches him get up, shaking his head and walking away. Tommy doesn’t move his forehead from Connor’s for a long minute, a long pause after Clive is gone. 

“That was,” Connor says, straightening up a little, trying to work through in his mind what’s just happened here.

“A twist?” Tommy offers, smirking.

“We keep running into those,” Connor says, smiling back. He hopes he’s not making how flustered he feels obvious, hopes Tommy can’t tell how fast his heart is racing. 

“Not the first time that’s happened to me,” Tommy says, shrugging. He looks a little flushed and flustered himself, Connor notices. He assumes it’s from the act of it all, the pretending, the curve they’d been thrown, probably, anyway. It could also be for the exact same not-really-wanting-the-kiss-to-end reasons Connor is flushed. It’s getting hard to tell.

“Not the first time what has happened?” Connor asks. 

“The threesome propositioning,” Tommy says, grinning again. He gets up and slides into the other side of the table as he does.

“No?” Connor asks, going for as casual as possible. Sometimes, more often the more this happens, Connor thinks they’re playing some sort of game here. He’s not positive what the rules are, but he thinks he’d like to win. 

“No. I even accepted some of them,” Tommy says, that pleased with himself expression on his face again. Connor swallows. Honestly, he’s not always certain how it’s possible Tommy is an actual real person who exists. He’s a lot, he’s a lot of things all at once. Connor is still trying to get used to how much he likes that. 

“Those sound like very good stories,” Connor says. 

“Maybe I’ll tell you sometime,” Tommy says, biting his lip like maybe he’s trying to draw Connor’s attention back to his own mouth. 

“Maybe?” Connor asks, with his attention very much on Tommy’s lips. 

“We'll see,” Tommy says, licking his lips. 

Whatever game they’re playing, Connor is increasingly glad they’re playing it.

///

“I didn’t think I needed your permission!” Connor says, five days later, fake glaring at Tommy.

“Well, I!” Tommy starts, and then he sighs and deflates, changing his expression to sad, “I know, I just hate seeing you with anyone else.”

“You suggested this break, not me,” Connor says. It’s strange, and probably really worrying, how the more times they play variations of this script, the more it feels real in the moment. The more caught up in Connor feels. He can’t say, but he imagines from the outside it looks more and more real, more convincing, more authentic, every single time. 

“Yeah I know, but I’m having trouble remembering why I did,” Tommy says, still fixing sad eyes on Connor. This is new, Tommy’s steering this in a different direction tonight, but it’s weirdly easy to play along with. Connor feels like he’s hardly thinking about it when he swallows hard, with emotions that almost feel genuine and says,

“You are?” 

“I miss you,” Tommy says, nodding, “and I don’t want to do this anymore.”

“You want to get back together?” Connor asks, eyebrow raised. 

“If you’ll take me,” Tommy says, eyes wide and reaching out, grabbing Connor’s hand on the table, sliding closer.

“Of course,” Connor says. He reaches out to put a hand on Tommy’s face, to lean in-

And then out of the corner of his eye he notices that his date, Lucas, is already long gone. He has no idea how long they’ve been putting on this show for no one. He drops his hand and pulls back, although he doesn’t let go of Tommy’s hand, yet. 

“We lost him,” Connor says, shaking his head. Tommy blinks and glances over, like he didn’t notice either. Like they were both so lost in their act they didn’t see their audience leave. 

“Yeah, guess so,” Tommy says. He still looks a little serious, a little something in his eyes that Connor can’t quite place. 

“That was good,” Connor says, mostly for something to say, mostly for the way their fingers are _still_ laced.

“I thought it was very convincing, personally,” Tommy says. 

“Apparently Lucas agreed,” Connor says. Tommy shakes his head at that, and then slowly, almost like he doesn’t really want to, let go of Connor’s hand with touches that feel like they are maybe purposefully lingering. Connor feels like one of them should make a joke, say something, but instead, when Tommy slides across the table, he asks about Sophia, and everything feels just a little different.

The way his foot keeps finding Connor’s under the table, well, that’s different too.

///

Lindy texts him sometimes, has since she left. They don’t talk about anything real- he knows she’s okay and that she still doesn’t know when she’ll be back, but mostly she texts or calls him to talk about Sophia. Lindy, apparently is never sure she trusts that Sophia is as okay as she says she is. Connor doesn’t blame her. He’s starting to feel a little weird about it, though, not the checking on Sophia part, but the thing where he’s a thousand percent sure Lindy is actively ignoring Tommy. He’s not really sure why, and he doesn’t think it’s his place to ask either of them, although he’d imagine it’s something to do with Lindy being off on her own doing things that are probably dangerous, and with the way Tommy likes to be able to protect people. Tommy doesn’t talk about it, but Connor hasn’t missed the look on his face when George mentions hearing from Lindy, when any of them do. It’s not like he and Lindy are close still, and it’s not like he really quite knows what’s going on with him and Tommy, but it makes him feel a little bit in the middle. 

He doesn’t really think there is anything to be done about it, not for now, anyway, so when Lindy texts as Connor is on his way to meet Tommy for morning coffee at a park, he just shakes his head. He texts her back on the bench he’s sitting and waiting on. His phone is barely back in his pocket when a dog rushes at him, happily wagging its tail. The dog is accompanied by a grinning Tommy, and Connor smiles back, reaching down to pet the dog who responds joyfully, nuzzling his head on one of Connor’s legs.

“Sorry about that, I was running late and I had to bring Boris with me,” Tommy says. 

“No problem,” Connor says, still petting Boris, “he’s friendly.”

“I think he just likes you,” Tommy says, sitting down beside Connor and joining in petting Boris. Tommy is grinning wider now, and watching Connor and Boris like- well. For a brief second Connor thinks maybe Tommy hadn’t been running late at all, maybe he had just wanted Connor to meet his dog, because-

“He reminds me of a dog I had growing up,” Connor says, cutting off his own train of thought and shaking his head a little. Tommy smiles at him again, like maybe that is somehow the best thing Connor could have said.

They spend two hours getting coffee and walking Boris and talking about pets they’d grown up with, and by the end of it Connor thinks that whatever is happening with Tommy, it will probably be happening long enough for everything with Lindy to sort itself out.

///

It’s the day after that when Connor makes another random date- it’s been several days and he’s missed- whatever it is- that has been happening. He’s missed it so much that he calls Tommy instead of texting him, stepping outside for some air as he does.

“Hey there,” Tommy says when he answers, sounding maybe a little surprised, or a little something anyway.  
“Hey, is this an okay time?” Connor asks.

“It’s good,” Tommy says. 

“You’re not in the middle of solving a crime or anything?” Connor asks, pleased when he hears a small laugh from Tommy at that.

“I’m always in the middle of solving a crime,” Tommy says, and Connor can actually hear the smirk in his voice over the phone, “what’s up?” Tommy finishes.

“I have a date later, I just wanted to make sure I could count on you to break it up,” Connor says.

“Oh,” Tommy says, “no, actually.”

“What?” Connor asks. He’s fine, he’s totally not feeling a little sick that Tommy had said _no_ , he’s okay, he’s.

“I don’t think that’s going to work for me,” Tommy says. Connor might actually throw up.

“But, I thought, I thought that was the deal,” Connor says. He doesn’t want to push it, because obviously if Tommy doesn’t want to play this game anymore he has every right to say as much and, but-

“It was, but I think,” Tommy pauses, “I think instead of whoever this guy is, you should just go out with me instead.”

“You,” Connor starts, but doesn’t finish because _go out with me instead_ is thundering in his ears. 

“If you want to, that is,” Tommy is saying, “if you want to, then I would really like if,”

“If we went out. You and me,” Connor says, cutting Tommy off a little, suddenly really needing to say it out loud.

“Yes,” Tommy says, he still has that tone in his voice, and Connor thinks now maybe it was never surprised but was instead _nervous_.

“I’d like that too,” Connor says, feeling a bit like he might throw up for different reasons now.

“Good, so, tonight then?” Tommy says. Connor nods, even though they’re on the phone.

“Tonight,” he repeats.

Tonight.

///

“I have a date,” Connor says to Sophia several hours later, pacing around his apartment at what could possibly described as a bit of a frenzy. Just a little.

“You always have a date,” Sophia says.

“I have a date with Tommy,” Connor says. Sophia startles a little, and then laughs.

“I knew it!” She says. Connor stops pacing to stare at her.

“What do you mean you knew it? No, you didn’t,” Connor says.

“There’s always been a thing about you two,” Sophia says. Connor sits down so he can glare at her.

“A thing?” he repeats.

“Like a sexual chemistry thing,” Sophia says. Connor shakes his head.

“This just happened,” Connor protests, even though he knows perfectly well that’s not strictly true. 

“Honey,” Sophia says, raising her eyebrows at him in disbelief. Which is all it takes for Connor to tell her the whole story, every date and moment.

“And now we’re going out,” he says when he’s finished. Sophia laughs again.

“I think you’ve been going out for a month,” Sophia says shaking her head and adding, “how was the kiss? How many boys besides you has he kissed?”

“Really hot,” Connor admits, “And I have no idea.”

“Maybe you’ll get to teach him, be his guide through-” Sophia starts, smirking.

“No. Stop,” Connor says. He has thought about that, though. He’s thought about just how far Tommy’s experience goes. He’s thought about all the things he’d like to do, things he didn’t really think he’d ever get the chance to, things that seem a lot more possible now. He wouldn’t mind guiding, really.

///

The thing about the date, at least at first, is that it feels so much like every other time they’ve done this. Once the the slight bit of awkwardness clears away, once they’re settled in and talking, it’s like every other time. There are a few more touches, a few more comments that Connor can’t pretend aren’t flirting, but it mostly feels just the same. Until they’ve asked for the check and Tommy asks if Connor would like to come back to his place for one more drink. That part is very, very different.

“You know, I don’t normally go to people’s apartments on a first date,” Connor says once they’re in the stairs of Tommy’s building.

“I don’t think this is actually our first date, though,” Tommy says, grinning back at him and then going to unlock his door.

“That’s what Sophia said,” Connor says, following Tommy inside. 

“You have already met my dog,” Tommy says. As if on cue, Boris runs up and greets both of them happily. 

“Not normally a pre-first-date sort of thing,” Connor says, petting Boris.

“Drink?” Tommy asks, hanging his coat up on a nearby coat rack.

“Sure, whatever you have is good,” Connor says. He takes the chance to properly look around Tommy’s apartment then- it’s all exposed brick and nice looking appliances, and he thinks he probably should have expected that. “Great apartment,” he says. 

“I like it,” Tommy says from the fridge where he’s grabbing beer.

“It’s definitely nicer than my place,” Connor says. He gives Boris a final pet and heads over to Tommy’s couch to sit.

“You should hang out here all the time, then,” Tommy says, returning to the living room area and sitting close to Connor on the couch.

“The couch is comfortable,” Connor says, running his hand over a pillow and swallowing down that thing he feels when Tommy says that sort of thing.

“I have more comfortable furniture,” Tommy says, smirking and passing Connor a beer. 

“Yeah? Anything specific?” Connor asks. He feels himself flush a little, the confidence in Tommy’s smirk affecting him even more than Tommy’s words.

“Well, I’ve got that nice chair over there,” Tommy says, nodding his head at an overstuffed-looking armchair, “and my bed, that’s pretty comfortable, too.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Connor says. He puts his undrunk beer down and turns his head, looking at Tommy full-on.

“You should,” Tommy says. He licks his lips, and Connor does flush at that.

“Careful, this conversation almost sounds like you didn’t really ask me back just for a drink,” Connor says. He thinks they are maybe still playing the end of that game. He thinks he’d still like to win.

“If that’s all you want,” Tommy says, grinning again, putting his own beer bottle down and sliding closer to Connor on the couch.

“What if it’s not?” Connor says, going for challenging and not flustered. He thinks he pulls it off.

“I think I can handle that,” Tommy says. He closes the gap between them and kisses Connor, for real this time. Without an audience, without other people around at all. Tommy kisses Connor in the privacy of his apartment, after a first date that was maybe more of an eighth or so, and it feels like liquid in Connor’s bones. He leans into it, bringing a hand up to cup Tommy’s face, licking at his mouth, moving his leg until their thighs are pressed together. Like last time, Connor doesn’t want it to end, he wants to just stay in this moment, closer and closer and warmer and warmer. He thinks it’s better now that it’s real. He thinks maybe it was always real.

The kiss goes on until Connor totally loses track of it, until they’re gasping until each other’s mouths and Tommy’s snaked a hand around and is undoing the buttons on Connor’s shirt, little fluttery touches after each button making Connor’s skin feel hot. It’s all hot, hot and almost desperate, maybe because it’s not actually, not remotely their first date, maybe because this has been a long time coming, Connor thinks. He moves his hand up from Tommy’s face and into his hair, and then he stills because Tommy does.

“Okay?” Connor asks, pulling back for just a second, “do you not like-”

“I really like that,” Tommy says, nudging his head up like he’s trying to push it more into Connor’s hands, and Connor thinks he gets it. So he gives Tommy’s hair the slightest tug, swallowing hard at the way that causes Tommy to make a whimpering sort of sound. “I’m really into that,” Tommy says eyes locked on Connor’s.

“I can work with that,” Connor says, voice sounding a little raspy to his own ears. Tommy already looks sort of wrecked, and it’s unfairly and ridiculously hot.  
“Can I tell you a secret?” Tommy says, raising his eyebrows and smirking as he does, like maybe still, still there are game plays being made.

“Okay,” Connor says. He’s honestly expecting Tommy to, like, say he’s only done this a couple of times. What he is _not_ expecting is for Tommy to say,

“After the first night we met, at the station? I thought about you after that, got off in the shower thinking about you,” and then to smirk at Connor even broader, like he knows exactly what he’s doing. Like he’s winning. He probably is. Connor is probably actually dying. Tommy Calligan is going to be his undoing.

“Oh yeah?” Connor says, “thinking about anything specific?”

“Can I show you?” Tommy asks, licking his lips as he does. Very intentionally licking his lips. 

“It seems like you should,” Connor says, nodding rapidly. Tommy is still licking his lips, they’re still pressed together, and he’s still got a hand on Connor’s chest and Connor still has a hand in Tommy’s hair and Tommy is looking at him like that, and Connor isn’t sure he cares what exactly Tommy was thinking about. He’d be down for anything in this moment, he thinks. Although he has a pretty good idea of what Tommy is thinking. Tommy grins and shifts, moving his hands from Connor’s shirt buttons to his pants button, unbuttoning it and then looking back up at Connor like he’s checking to make sure Connor is still with him here. Connor nods again, feels like he is probably nodding so enthusiastically it is almost comical. Tommy shifts again, and then he’s pulling on Connor’s pants and Connor is lifting his hips up and Tommy is pulling his pants down in a swift motion.

“Leave your hands in my hair?” Tommy asks, getting on his knees in front of Connor on the couch as he does. Connor moves his arms so he can keep a hand in Tommy’s hair, and add another one. He nods again and gives Tommy’s hair a slight tug again, and Tommy flushes, “Yeah, do that, too.”

“Did you think about that in the shower?” Connor says, trying to sound casual and teasing, but probably failing because Tommy is between his legs now, licking at Connor’s hipbones and navel, running his hands up and down Connor’s thighs.

“More than once,” Tommy says. He keeps his pattern going, hands all up and down Connor’s legs, little licks and then long traces of his tongue over Connor’s skin, closer and closer until Connor’s not really breathing. He tugs on Tommy’s hair again, making Tommy moan in earnest this time, so he does it again, and again, threading his fingers and hands all through Tommy’s hair and giving little pulls and tugs until Tommy moves his mouth from just close enough to absolutely right there, taking all of Connor in his mouth. Literally almost all, in a move that is quick and impressive and so unbelievably sexy and that seems to come from quite a bit of experience.  
Not that Connor has much time to think about it, as he keeps his hands tight in Tommy’s hair and tries to watch for as long as he can, watch how Tommy looks, until he has to close his eyes and just feel. Because this is maybe the very best blowjob he’s ever gotten, and so maybe he was wrong about the whole only-done-this-a-couple-of-times thing, because Tommy seems to very much know what he’s doing. Connor loses that thought almost as quickly as it comes, feeling the warmth of Tommy’s mouth, and the way Tommy’s hands are squeezing Connor’s thighs. He already feels like he’s close, like he’s about to completely fall apart, and he’s unable to help himself when he rocks his hips up into Tommy’s mouth a little, involuntary at first, but then Tommy moans at that too, and nods and chokes out,

“Yes,” like maybe he really likes that too, like he wants that. And so thinking about how Tommy apparently thinks about him in the shower and how fucking talented Tommy is with his mouth and about how Tommy likes hands tugging on his his hair and when Connor- it’s too much and exactly enough. Connor rocks his hips up five more times and hears moans of his own fill the room, and then he’s exploding and Tommy is _not moving_ until the very last shudder. Connor lets go of Tommy’s hair and closes his eyes for a minute, coming down.

Tommy’s climbed back up on the couch, more on top of him than anything else when Connor opens his eyes again. Tommy looks more pleased with himself than Connor has ever seen him. Also more flushed and wrecked than Connor thinks he’s ever seen another person look in his life. He desperately wants see if he can can get him even redder, even more disheveled.

“I won,” Tommy says, grinning, like he’s been thinking it was a game all along too.

“That round,” Connor says, reaching out to pull Tommy in for another long kiss. 

“Your move, then,” Tommy says, grinning wide.

“I think you said something about your bed being comfortable,” Connor says, and Tommy nods rapidly and stands up, gesturing for Connor to follow.

“You shouldn’t just take my word for it,” Tommy says. Connor very, very much agrees.

As it turns out, the bed is incredibly comfortable, which is good because Connor doesn’t leave it much all weekend long. (Tommy does insist they leave it to eat, crumbs in the covers and all, but he does make all the food, and Connor really, really can’t complain.) And in the middle of the night, the second night of a date that’s been all weekend, Connor looks at the sheets and Tommy in them, he feels Tommy’s arm around him, feels the warmth of his skin. He thinks maybe this is where the game was actually going, this lazy snuggle, and how whole he feels inside it. 

He thinks they both won.


End file.
